- DAVENPORT, IA-Just two blocks from the Mississippi River, the Redstone Room is the heart of the River Music Experience (RME).
- A non-profit organization, RME has become an amalgam of live music, music education, and music exhibit programs. But the Redstone Room only partially contains the RME's facilities: the Music Incubator project includes a rock and roll band camp, the River Currents Tour for 5th graders, and RMX Live is a regular Friday night street party in the plaza adjacent to the Redstone Building.
The audio system in Davenport, IA's Redstone Room is centered around two Nexo NX-242 digital system controllers which feed five Yamaha PC-9501N digital switching amplifiers that power a Nexo stereo rig. Several national touring acts, including Edwin McCain, have had a chance to try out the new system since the venue opened in April.
The Redstone Room recently underwent a renovation of its sound system, and according to RME president/CEO Lon Bozarth, it's a dream come true for the RME. "Plans to create a world class live music venue for the Quad Cities have been in place since the RME was originally conceived," he said. "Together with our proposed Music Incubator educational center, the RME will become a showcase for the creation and performance of American music." The RME Music Incubator educational center will occupy 12,000 square feet in the Redstone building with music lesson rooms and practice spaces, interactive classrooms, and a recording studio.
The Redstone Room has a capacity of 250 and a 20-foot wide by 19-foot deep stage with an 8-foot by 8-foot by 6-foot drum riser. Four large video screens on the east walls can display a live feed from the room as well as recorded video.
Flanking the video screens is the new Nexo stereo rig, with eight Geo S-805 compact line array elements, two Geo S-830 compact line array elements, and six CD-12 cardioids sub-bass elements. Two Nexo NX-242 digital system controllers feed five Yamaha PC-9501N digital switching amplifiers that power the Nexo rig.
Chip Self is president of St. Louis, MO-production company Logic Systems Sound and Lighting. It is his assertion that because the Redstone Room is long and narrow, with relatively low, sheet metal ceilings, the design goals were to keep as much energy off of the ceiling as possible, and to provide even coverage from every angle. "The Geo S series was a natural choice," he said, "based not only on the ability to control the vertical dispersion pattern, but being able to vary the CDD horn directivity plates to adjust the horizontal coverage pattern to suit."
Selection of a Nexo loudspeaker system for RME's Redstone Room originated with a Geo T Series rig supplied by Logic Systems for last year's RME-sponsored River Roots Live festival in downtown Davenport. "The client was so thoroughly impressed with the performance of the speaker system," said Self, "that he wanted us to install something similar in the new music venue they were building."
After flying to Davenport to visit the construction site and reviewing the architectural plans, Self came up with the most appropriate solution for the space.
"In situations such as this, although it's not yet possible to predict with GeoSoft2, we've had excellent results with creating asymmetrical horizontal coverage by removing only one side of the CDD plates. With an array very near a wall, it's helpful to be able to keep that side of the horizontal narrow, while opening up the other side to provide wider coverage near the front of the room."
